The Sunday Mail
The Sharpshooter
Vukani Madoda
When all is said and done, I am sure we can all draw lessons from the famous Chinese proverb that says: “Do not mock the crocodile until you have crossed the river, and then, and only then, can you tell the crocodile that it has a bad breath.”
The criminal cabal went too far. Their lust for power and control threatened to destroy a legacy, and thankfully we can now start to restore that legacy.
Events of the last few weeks confirm that Zimbabweans have remembered the power, courage and wisdom of saving a legacy.
Surely, the people – in solidarity with the ZImbabwe Defence Forces – could not watch any longer as an illustrious heritage was whittled away by a clique of criminals who had wormed their way into the Mugabe family’s confidences.
As the former First Lady’s power grew over the years, she witnessed how sweet absolute leadership could be, egged on by an egghead and his burly colleague among other self-centred politicians who thought they could forever take the people of Zimbabwe for granted.
For all other politicians, this should be a lesson well learnt.
Just because you have power or are close to power does not mean that you can grab land wherever and whenever you want.
Having power or being close to power does not mean you can plunder a nation’s resources so that you buy fancy vehicles.
Having power and being close to power should be used for the things we saw in the early days, things like building an orphanage and conducting other charitable works for the sole benefit of those not as endowed as you are.
The clique of criminals who had surrounded Cde Mugabe and his wife circled like vultures.
They knew Cde Mugabe’s wife was young and inexperienced in matters of politics, and they used her to get Cde Mugabe’s ear.
And just look at how disastrous that was to both the nation and the Office of the President!
Slowly but surely, at first, and then with amazing brazenness and disregard for everyone else around Cde Mugabe, the clique of criminals paid total disregard to the ethos of the liberation struggle and the war heroes that had brought about Zimbabwe’s Independence.
The had forgotten how the people always used to shout: “Amandla awethu!”
So rapacious was the onslaught and so headstrong the charge that many in the country were suddenly afraid of even raising a word of caution in public, or expressing outrage in private, lest their livelihoods be threatened.
Many decided to sit back quietly and hope for the best. We had forgotten that the power was in the people.
Which is why we should all thank the Zimbabwe Defence Forces for reminding us of the power that we hold.
Perhaps we all found ourselves being silenced one by one because suddenly the political enemy was no longer Nera, Code, MDC Alliance, NPP and so on.
The enemy was in our midst; wriggling ever closer to the Mugabe family and causing alarm and despondency across the country even as it allegedly plundered institutions like the Zimbabwe Manpower Development Fund with impunity and had the temerity to brag about it.
Surely we must all spare a thought for the Christopher Mutsvangwas of this world who were vilified and hounded. Scores of other loyal Zimbabweans met a similar fate.
And when the then Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa – now fittingly the President of our Republic and Commander-in-Chief of the ZDF – was attacked by the criminal cabal, something had to give. That is why our military did what it did, and that is why the people of Zimbabwe have stood by them through it all.
When all is said and done, I am sure we can all draw lessons from the famous Chinese proverb that says: “Do not mock the crocodile until you have crossed the river, and then, and only then, can you tell the crocodile that it has a bad breath.”
The criminal cabal went too far. Their lust for power and control threatened to destroy a legacy, and thankfully we can now start to restore that legacy.
It is now up to President Mnangagwa to set the record straight, preserve the legacy and steer us towards a prosperous future that only two weeks ago appeared to have disappeared from the horizon. As for the rest of us, it is somlandela uMnangagwa! Somlandela yonke indawo! Siyaya noba kubi!
Dubulaizitha!
